Threading device for sewing needles



March 24, 1931. F W TZ 1,797,732

THREADING DEVICE FOR SEWING NEEDLES Filed May 4. 1929 Inventor: Hull; 1273mm? Patented Mar. 24 1931 FRITZ RAGEWI'IZ, or oonoenn, GERMANY THREADING DEVICE FOR SEWING NEEDLES Application filed May 4, 1929, Serial No. 360,397, and in Germany March 18, 1929.

The invention concerns a threading device for sewing needles of every kind, in which the needle is passed into an insertion funnel with resilient side walls growing narrower towards the back andthen by depressing a spring-mounted thin threading pin the thread is thrust through the eye in the needle.

The devices of this kind hitherto known have a number of grave: drawbacks which have prevented a general practical adoption.

On'the one hand they were relatively complicated, expensive and clumsy, and on the other hand they frequently failed, partly owing to their design in itself and partly on account of the great risk of bending the fine parts jutting out in front ofthe threading device proper, the dimensions of which parts had to be adapted to the sizeof theeye of the needle! I f I These drawbacks are obviated by the present invention. The essential feature of the 1 itself slidably fitted in a second sleeve in invention consists in the first place in the fact that the sleeve which carries at its front end the insertion funnel and at its back end the fiat spring with threading pin jointed to it is such manner that by partly telescoping the two sleeves together the fiat spring which projects outward dur'ing use, together with the threadingpin folded up. against it, come sary toipull the inside sleeve outwards to a slightextent, whereupon the fiat spring automatically jumps into its position for use.

Provision is also made by which it is secured that even with an altered, i. e. no longer "'accurateiposition of the flat spring which car- "ries the threading pin, as would be possible for example through wrong adjustment of the two sleeves or'through unskillful han- "dling of the device when threading, nevertheless in every case reliable working of the deviceis guaranteed. V i

. V On the drawing appended, the new threading device is shown by way of example in one 'sition during thethreading process. 'thread is passed on the right side ofv the constructional form. Figs. 1 and2 show the device in natural size in elevation, Fig. 1 showing the position when in use, and Fig. 2 when not in use. Figs. 3 and 4 show on an enlarged scale a front elevation and sectional elevation respectively, while Fig. 5 is a plan view also on an enlarged scale. In Figs. 6-11 another design of the inner sleeve is shown in which the latter can be made entirely of a sheet of metal as a mass article.

The sleeve Z), slidably mounted'in the sleeve a, has. at its outer end the insertion funnel c for'the needle, with the side walls (Z and e which areresilient and grow narrower to-. wards the back. At its inner end this sleeve 7) carries on the flattenedpart f (Fig. 5) the outward-bent fiat spring 9, which is fork shaped on its outer part in order to receive the threading pin it which is ointed on. The

latter in the position ofuse projects in the 7 suitable way into the transverse thread slot '5, and with its end nicked at the bottom is in contact with anarrow flat spring 70 which also projects from the right into the thread slot and which is mounted on the top of the insertion funnel. A fixed wall Z inserted in the sleeve 72, which wall adjoins the left side of the thread slot 2', has on its upper part a groove m expanding funnel-wise upwards. This groove provides a suitable guide for the threading pin when the loop of thread is passed through the eye of the needle, the more so as the spring 70 during this process gently presses this pin into the groove. When threading, the needle 8 is inserted with theeye forwards into the threading funnel, and in the usual way rotates automatically in such manner that the eye is in the right position for threading. In this process the fiat end of the needle eye; (Fig. 4) I enters a fiat nick n providedin the middle of the fixed wall Z so that the needle cannot get out of 1p}?- threading pin into the transverse slot 2' from i above, so that it first slides along this'pin,

and then under the action of the spring is shoots in exactly belowthe threading pin.

The thread which now lies below the threadg pin can no longer of itself move out of this position at all, and if the flat spring 9 is now pressed down, then of necessity the threading pin must grip the thread and draw the loop of thread through the eye of the needle. The loop of thread is then drawn by hand out downwards to any desired extent, and the needle withthe thread can now be taken out of the device, the thread being m suitably drawn through the side sloto 3) of the insertion funnel.

Practice has shown beyond all doubt that the present new threading device works with absolute reliability in all cases-and-that an exact adjustment of the threading pin or the fiat spring 9 which carries it, does not very much matter. The thread has no possibility of escaping the threading pin in any way, the latter can, owing to the accurate way in which it is guided when threading, always perform only accurately uniform movements, and finally the needle itself cannot be shifted or turned from its right position for threading.

When not in use the threading pin is drawn out of the thread slot and folded up against the flat spring 7 coming to lie in the forked part of this spring. If now the sleeve 6 is partly inserted into the sleeve a then the spring 9 with the threading pin comes to lie quite close on the narrowed part 7 ofthe inner sleeve, so that when the device is not in use no part projects outwards and the specially important but thin. parts are saved from the risk of injury orbending.

In order to prevent relativefrotation of both sleeves, the inner sleeve .6 has a pin 77 which isguided ina corresponding slot 9 of the outer sleeve. This pin at the same time forms the stop when drawing out the inner sleeve.

In order to use the device the sleeve 6 is nearly drawn out whereupon the flat spring 9 shoots automatically into its position of use illustrated in Fig. 4:. By means of the prolongation projecting somewhat beyond its pivotal point, the threading pin can easily be folded upward until it automatically and easlly jumps into the upper funnel-shaped expansion of its guide groove m. e The sleeve (1!. is provided with a removable cap r so that the entire inner hollow space of the sleeve as far as the fixed wall Z can serve as the needle box.

The essential portion of the new threader is the head piece with the insertion funnel for the needle and the resilient side walls which narrow towards the back. For the practical introduction of such an article of use it is of decisive importance that it shall admit of being manufactured simply and chiefly as a mass article; How this is secured in the present case isshown by Figs. 6-11 of the drawing. The inner sleeve with the insertion funnel and the resilient side walls consists of a sheet metal piece 6 which in the first naehining operation is cut out in such manner that on its upper part two side cheeks t and u are formed. In the same working process the piece of sheet metal is rovided with the recesses 71, w, w and in ad ition a tongue k is cut into the sheet, the upper end of which is connected with the ,piecewof sheet metal and later on forms the small fiat spring projecting from above into the thread slot. The recesses thus formed afterwards, when the piece of sheet'metal is rolled, form the openings for the threading pin to pass through. In addition in the first working process the two side cheeks t and u are provided with the stamped grooves 'y and z for guiding the needle. 7

As will be seen from Figs- 8 and 9, in the second working process the two side cheeks t and u are bent over inwards and folded close against the piece of metal sheet. In the third process (Figs. 10 and 1 1) the sheet metal piece thus prepared is rolled together into a round sleeve. The two cheeks -tand .uwnow lie resiliently close against eachother and :in

this way .form the resilient backward narrowing side walls of the insertion funnel .for the needle to be threaded. The two inward bent edges of the two cheeks further form theoutlet slot for the thread so that thethread when drawn out of the threader'does not come into;

contact with any sharp metal edge. The tongue previously cut in is lifted .outof the recess and by pressurein shaping .pincers bent into the above mentioned fiat spring.

The cheek t asappears from Fig. 6 is slight ly shorter than the other cheek wandin addition the piece of metal sheet is .closebeneath this cheek t provided'witha small horizontal slot 2' which after the rolling of the piece of sheet metal forms the transverse part 'of the thread slot. Finally in the last working process the head of the sleeve is bent inward so that the upper metal edges of the insertion funnel can be covered. In this way it is possible to make the sleeve with the insertion funnel completely finished quickly andcheaply in one piece as a mass article.

I claim:

1. A threading device. for sewing needles comprising an outer sleeve, an inner sleeve-- pin against the inner sleeve and the with-- drawal of the inner sleeve allowing the fiat spring to expand into operative position.

2. A threading device for sewing needles comprising an outer sleeve, an inner sleeve having a transverse thread slot provided with a tapered groove in one side wall thereof, adapted to Slide telescopically within said outer sleeve, a slotted insertion funnel at the front end of said inner sleeve, resilient side walls to said funnel, said walls being tapered towards the rear of the funnel, a fiat spring carried by said inner sleeve, and a threading pin jointed to said spring.

3. A threading device for sewing needles comprising an outer sleeve, an inner sleeve having a transverse thread slot provided with a tapered groove in one side wall thereof, adapted to slide telescopically within said outer sleeve a slotted insertion funnel at the front end of said inner sleeve, resilient side walls to said funnel, said walls being tapered towards the rear ofthe funnel, a flat spring carried by said inner, sleeve, a threading pin jointed to said spring, the thread slot of the inner sleeve having a flat nick to receive the needle head when the needle is pushed into the guide funnel and serving to prevent the needle moving out of position when the loop of thread is drawn through.

4. A threading device for sewing needles comprising an outer sleeve, an inner sleeve having a transverse thread slot provided with a tapered groove in one side wall thereof, adapted to slide telescopically within said outer sleeve, a slotted insertion funnel at the front end of said inner sleeve, a single piece of sheet metal, having openings for the passage of the threading pin, forming the inner sleeve and insertion funnel, cheeks being provided on said piece of metal and being first folded inwards against the piece of metal sheet, the latter being then rolled into a sleeve, said cheeks lying resiliently against 7 each other, a slot formed by the inwardly bent edges of said sleeve for passing out the thread, a flat spring carried by said inner sleeve, a threading pin jointed to said spring, the thread slot of the inner sleeve having a flat nick to receive the needle head when the needle is pushed into the guide funnel and serving to prevent the needle moving out of position when the loop of the thread is drawn through.

FRITZ RAGEWITZ. 

